In computing, “servers” are programs that serve the requests of other programs, which are known as the server's “clients”. A server performs computational tasks on behalf of its clients. The clients may be running on the same computer as the server, or the server and client computers may be connected through a network. Servers provide a wide variety of services, both inside local or private networks and within the public Internet. A few of the many kinds of servers in use include application servers dedicated to running certain software applications, database servers, email servers, file servers, game servers, name (e.g., domain name) servers, network servers whose primary purpose is to support network communication, print servers, proxy (intermediary) servers, and web servers, but discussion of servers herein is not limited to these specific examples.
Server configurations and operations can be complex, but tools exist to monitor server status and activity. Tools are used, for example, to monitor server performance, server availability, server compliance with specific best practices, and other aspects of server health. Monitoring tools may provide alerts when specified thresholds are passed, e.g., threshold values that represent an amount of free storage remaining, a processing delay, a processing item count, or the like. Monitoring tools may also provide alert(s) when an event is detected which indicates a health issue. Monitoring tools may also provide server administrators with instructions on how to prevent, diagnose, and resolve undesirable server issues.